Real Estate
Glossary
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GABLE ROOF:
An angled roof, triangular in shape.
GAIN:
Any increase in value or monetary holdings.
GAMBREL ROOF:
A roof that has two, differently angled slopes
on each side of the peak, the upper slope being flatter while the lower
slope is steeper.
GARDEN APARTMENTS:
A description of a kind of apartment unit
which enjoys direct access to a lawn or other garden-like area.
GENERAL CONTRACTOR:
The central figure in most construction
pyramids, the person hired by the owner to plan and oversee the entire
job. Often hires subcontractors who specialize in the various trades
required for the job (i.e. plumbers, electricians, framers, carpenters,
etc.).
GENERAL LIEN:
A registered claim against property which,
instead of attaching just to one property, attaches to all properties
owned by the party against whom the claim has been made.
GENERAL WARRANTY DEED:
Instrument which transfers legal title
to property in which the Grantor warrants clear title to the Grantee.
GENTRIFICATION:
The process in which a neighborhood is
transformed from low-value to high-value properties.
GEORGIAN:
A classic looking, English-style house, rectangular
in shape, large, with two or three storeys complemented by classic lines.
GI LOAN:
Also known as "VA loan".
GIFT DEED:
Instrument which transfers legal title to property
for no consideration (except perhaps natural love and affection).
GINNIE MAC (GNMA):
Government National Mortgage Association.
Assistance in obtaining purchase mortgages.
GOOD AND MARKETABLE TITLE:
Ownership of a property which is
free of competing claims and interests.
GOOD FAITH ESTIMATE:
A written statement of the anticipated
costs of completing a loan transaction which must be provided by a lender
to a borrower within 72 hours of the submission of the loan application.
GOOD FAITH:
A term to describe a party's legitimate and
honest efforts to meet her obligations in a given situation.
GOVERNMENT RECTANGULAR SURVEY:
A
regularized system of surveying land using 24-square-mile quadrangles
which are then further divided into 6-square-mile parts called
"townships", which are in turn subdivided into 36 1-square-mile
"sections".
GRACE PERIOD:
The time a borrower is allowed after a payment
is due to make that payment without incurring penalties.
GRADE:
The contour of the land, usually around a building,
which affects drainage patterns on the property.
GRADIENT:
Expressed as a percentage, the rate of increase or
decrease in the legal of land, the slope.
GRADUATED LEASE:
A rental agreement in which the periodic
rental payments increase at specified points in time.
GRADUATED PAYMENT MORTGAGE (GPM):
A land loan in which the
periodic payments increase at a stated rate over a stated period of time
before levelling off for the remainder of the term of the loan.
GRADUATION PERIOD:
The interval between increases in the
payments on a GPM.
GRADUATION RATE:
The rate at which the payments increase in a
GPM, expressed as a percentage.
GRANDFATHER CLAUSE:
A provision in a law that ensures that
the law is not retroactive, that it does not render a previously legal
thing illegal. For example, a new zoning by-law requiring all houses to be
at least five feet from the side lot line would not render illegal a
20-year-old house that stands three feet from the side lot line. The
property would be described as "legal non-conforming".
GRANT:
The act of giving title to another. May also be used
as a noun, meaning the instrument that transfers title.
GRANTEE:
One who receives title.
GRANTOR:
One who gives title to another.
GRANTOR/GRANTEE INDEX:
An alphabetical listing of the parties
to all transfers of land, cross-indexed by grantor, grantee and the
property transferred.
GROSS AREA:
The total floor space of a building, including
unusable space, measured from the outside walls.
GROSS INCOME:
A person's earnings from all sources in a given
period before expenses are deducted.
GROSS LEASABLE AREA:
The total usable, rental space in a
building.
GROSS LEASE:
A rental agreement for the use of the property
where the tenant pays a certain periodic amount which does not change as a
result of changes in the various expenses of the property, which are the
sole responsibility of the landlord.
GROSS MARGIN:
The difference between the interest rate
chargeable on a variable or adjustable rate
mortgage and the rate set by the index rate upon which the mortgage
rate is based.
GROUND LEASE:
A long-term lease of land (often 99 years) in
which the tenant is allowed to improve the land and use it for the term of
the lease at the end of which the land and all improvements revert to the
control and occupancy of the owner.
GROUND RENT:
Portion of rent attributable to the land alone.
GROUP HOME:
A dwelling which has been adapted to house a
number of un-related persons who share a common characteristic.
GROWING-EQUITY MORTGAGE (GEM):
A mortgage with a fixed
interest rate which has periodic payments which increase at intervals, the
added money per payment being applied directly to the outstanding
principal on the mortgage.
GUARANTEE:
1. An enforceable warranty on the continuing
usefulness of a product.
2. An agreement by a third party to a loan
transaction to join in the transaction and to be held liable for the
moneys secured by the loan instrument should the principal debtor fail to
pay.
GUARANTEE MORTGAGE:
A land loan that has a third party added
to provide added assurance that the obligations under the loan will be
met.
GUARANTY FEE:
Fannie Mae's fee for insuring a mortgage